The One Where Daddy Droops

Yes, he really did faint.  Not the sudden “thud” kind, but more of the gentle drooping type of fainting.  Third time in the delivery room and he faints.  But wait—it’s not what you think.  It wasn’t the scents or sight of blood or fluids or even nerves that had him fainting.  That would’ve been too easy.    
It was lack of food.  Yes, the big guy needs more than a few onion rings to fill him up.  Here are the details.
So, in birth story part 1, you remember that he played chauffeur the morning of January 20.  He, however, neglected to eat breakfast.  Then after dropping the girls & I home, he went straight to work, not stopping to eat and bypassed all food places as he went.  He was very busy at work, and quickly stopped for some onion rings.  He worked a bit longer than usual, then went grocery shopping after work.  When he came home, it was straight to the girls’ bedtime routines and tucking them in.  Please note that he still has not yet eaten… 
My water broke at 9 pm, so he quickly changed and we went to the hospital.  I did pack Jono a bag full of granola bars, chips and water.  The major food groups were covered—salty & sweet.  Again, we bypassed all sorts of eating places, though I did keep telling him that he could and should get something to eat.  There was a coffee shop still open when we arrived at the hospital at 9:40 pm—I encouraged him again to get something.  And again, he declined, wanting to see me settled first. 
By the time I got a room (I was in triage first) and “settled” in, it was after midnight.  And FINALLY he went and got something to eat.  He was a bit worried to leave me because he didn’t want to miss the baby’s birth.  (Jhyelle was born soon after I’d arrived at the hospital.)  I couldn’t blame him.  How do you explain that??  Sorry, honey, Daddy was there but was too hungry to hang around while you were being born??  He came back as quickly as he could, relieved to not have missed any action. 
Just before the pushing started, I noticed he was wearing a fleece sweater over his shirt.  I asked him if he wanted to take off his sweater, to be more comfortable.  No, he’s fine, he says.  I ask if he’s sure.  Yes, he says.  (This is key!)
Baby comes out and out of the corner of my eye, I see him bending towards me.  I thought he was going to kiss my forehead.  Then I hear the Doctor call out “Oh, Dad’s down!”
Ummm, WHAT?!?!?! 
I was immediately worried.  He’s never passed out!  Ever!!  I knew it wasn’t the delivery room or anything.  Now I’m worrying that he’s suddenly sick.  And remember from part 2 of the birth story, how there were a number of people in the room?  Well, why did the Doctor have to order somebody to help Jono?  Seriously!  “Somebody! Help! Dad!!” were her exact words.  Like hello, ladies, I certainly was in no position to do anything.  And the Doctor was a wee bit busy tending to me.  The resident was closest to him and just stared as though this was her first night in the delivery room.  My nurse had to come from the other side of the room to help him out.  Their next panic was for his head.  They thought he had hit it because of their viewpoint when he fell.  So, they’re also examining him for blood and bruising.  (He did not hit his head.)  They managed to get him sitting up before he awoke.
Then I hear Jono ask “what’s going on?”  They tell him he passed out, and began bombarding him about his head injury.  He kept saying he was fine, and they sort of helped him up from the floor and into a chair.  (He’s like 6’3 and they were all about 5’5; not too much help from them either here).  Then there was talk of his going to the ER because they all swore he’d hit his head, despite his assurance that his head was unscathed in this adventure.
After my Doctor got me all stitched up and the baby was tended to and the extra players left the scene, my Doctor came back in with some apple juice.  All those people, and the second busiest person in the room was the only one to do something productive. 
My version is definitely much more descriptive and accurate.  Jono’s version is this:
He was getting hot, and started to lean forward a bit as he was taking off his sweater.  Next thing he knows, he’s sitting on the floor, with a few strangers standing over top asking him if he’s alright.
This dramatic event still makes us laugh.  Our family nearly fell over from laughing so hard.  I’m glad he’s okay. Needless to say that I’m always making sure that he’s been eating and drinking water regularly.

Birth Story–Part 2

(you can read about the first part here)
At the brief registration process (my Dr had pre-registered me, so I only had to answer some basic stuff), I asked about private room availability.  Apparently, part of the third floor was under construction, so the rooms on the LDRP unit were cut in half to share with another ward.  That’s not what I wanted to hear then and just kept praying for a private room.  
They finally stick me in a triage bed, and start all the pre-delivery stuff.  A nurse gets me attached to monitors for the baby & contractions.  The doctor comes in, all business-like, introduces herself and asks if my water broke.  Yes, I say.  So you felt a big gush, she asks.  Yes. 
(I will interject here that there was another patient in triage moaning and screaming with pain, acting like she was in labour.  But when they checked her, she was not having any contractions, nor was she in labour.  They didn’t know what her issue was, but it wasn’t labour.  Funny enough, her screams stopped too).
The Doctor checks me.  I’m now 4 cm dilated.  And, with that check came a contraction, followed by the rest of my water.  (It can come out in segments, not the big tv/movie gush).  She asks about pain management—epidural, I say.  In the meantime, I’m also hearing chatter in the general area between staff, about how there are only 2 beds left on LDRP.  One for another patient and the last one for….
Me.  Thank you, God!!!
A nurse comes in and gets my IV started.  I’m still asking Jono if he wanted to get something to eat, before Tim’s closed at 11 pm.  He wanted to wait and see me into a room.  This nurse also asked about pain management, again, I emphasize epidural.  Anyone who asks knew up front I wanted the epidural—I even heard the staff chattering about it too.  Contractions were getting worse and more frequent.  Finally, it was time to move.  I had to walk it over.  It’s not a far distance, but far enough when you have to pause in between for a contraction.  As soon as I meet my nurse a few minutes later, I ask about the epidural.  She claimed she needed to check something first and then made the call to the anesthesiologist.
Her tone on the call didn’t sound right.  When she hung up, she told me of a waiting list.
Um, what?!
Clearly the third floor needs more than one anesthesiologist assigned at a time.  There was a c-section and then another labour patient ahead of me.  So, at least 1.5 hours of waiting.  I ask about my other options and whether I could still receive an epidural while on another painkiller.  Fentanyl was offered, which would make me sleepy/drowsy, and yes, I could still get the epidural.  My nurse also explained that it’s not that strong.  Some ladies need a dose every 30 minutes, others it has no effect and other need only one dose.    
They started the Fentanyl around midnight, Jan 21.  It was bliss—while it lasted.  It was like clockwork.  I’d get a dose, feel very sleepy and kinda hover in and out of sleep.  But around 25 minutes afterwards, it’d wear off, and I’d beg for another shot.  During this time, Jono finally went for something to eat.  By this point, he was just worried about missing out on the birth.  He had a feeling my labour would be quick.  He made it back as I was on my third dose, I think.  I asked for another—they turned me down.  Huh?!  I’d had three doses by then, and they were worried about overdoing it.  They didn’t want to give me too much because they didn’t want the baby to be too sleepy either.  And then the anesthesiologist appeared. 
Thank God!!! 
It was now 1:30 am; pretty much the hour and a half that my nurse had originally guestimated for his timing.  He started off by asking a few questions.  I almost asked him to drug me first, then ask questions later.  I’d had an epidural for my first labour—surely not that much has changed in 4.5 years, right?  So, he’s finished his little interrogation and goes to prep his kit.  (I think that these drug doctors should always be prepared, really).  The nurse says to sit up and turn to face the window.  Jono’s pulling me up to sitting position and…
I’m extremely uncomfortable.  There’s a tremendous amount of pressure down below and I felt like I was living in one big everlasting contraction.  This was not a good sign.  And my other issue—the need to push.  I mention my feelings to Jono, who then tells the nurse.  She decides to check me…
Aren’t I now 10 cm dilated!!!  And the head was right there, hence all the pressure.  The only thing I could say was “damn!”, as I hear the nurse tell the drug man that he was no longer needed.
The necessary labour observers are called in.  A couple extra nurses, a resident (I don’t know why she was even there–she did nothing).  They’re trying to get the room set up.  My nurse is watching me with the order to not push.  Sorry lady, my uterus was doing its own thang by then!  Let’s try pushing, she says.  Sure.  Two good pushes and now the nurse is practically screaming for help.  The Doctor then walks in, and all I hear is “I’ll deliver”.  I think she had enough time to pull on some gloves.  The next best words—“it’s a girl!”. 
Rishayla Jasai arrived at 1:47 am.  And she cried right away—yay!
She was a wee bit sleepier than they wanted though and very congested sounding, so they took her to the Neo-natal Intensive Care Unit for a little bit, for observation and intense suctioning.  But she was fine. 
As we’re awaiting the placenta, Jono decided that this was now the best time to pass out—thud!  (separate post to follow)   I’d also torn a bit, and the doctor claimed I’d need stitched.  I wasn’t looking forward to the painkiller injections (those sting without the epidural) nor the stitching, which I wouldn’t feel anyways.  Then, she informs me that because it’s only two stitches, they would do it without painkiller.  No need for an extra 6-8 needle pokes for 4 stitch pokes was her reasoning.  Could I not catch a pain break at all?!?!   Maybe if you were stitching a limb, I’d understand.  But these stitches were going probably the most delicate of all areas of my anatomy and I must feel every stitch??  Oy!  I also ended up with 3 stitches, after all was said and done.
Anyways, I survived the labour and lived to tell about it.  I was disappointed to miss out on the highly effective painkillers, especially when I’d arrived at the hospital with enough time to receive them.  Some women are anti-drugs during labour, and that their choice.  Me, I prefer the least pain possible.  Pain generally makes me very tired and weary.  I knew that the best way for me to have some form of energy would mean eliminating or at least dulling the pain. 
I’m very happy to have a third little girl and am relieved that she was only in the observatory side of the NICU, as opposed to a proper bed with all the invasive monitoring.
Next up, my hospital observations and how Rishayla was doing.

Birth Story–Part 1

Who ever would’ve thought I’d be retelling the birth of my third child?  A third daughter, no less…

Jonathon took the morning of January 20 off work in order to drive me around.  I thought he would’ve just stayed home with the girls while I went to my appointments.  But, he decided that I was in no physical condition to drive.

I first saw my OB.  She informed me that I was two centimeters dilated so far.  The contractions I’d been having since about 11:30 pm the night before were clearly doing something.  For formality’s sake, I had to make an appointment for the following week, but I think we were both sure I wouldn’t be making that one.

After the OB, I had an appointment to get my WinRho injection because it was my due date and baby hadn’t yet arrived.  If I would give birth in the next few days following this shot, I wouldn’t require any extra treatment for this in hospital, post partum.  If the baby took longer to arrive, then I’d need another dose of this treatment.  Following this appointment, we went home.

My contractions were still sporadic and slightly uncomfortable, but no real pattern to them yet.  At about 2 pm, my mom called me from work, asking if anything was happening.  I told her about my random contractions and she planned to leave work shortly.  The plan was for her to come and stay with Jamayia & Jhyelle while I was in the hospital and stay a few days to help me out once I got home.  She also knew that because I had tested positive for Group B Strep, I would need to head to the hospital fairly early in my labour to receive treatment.  I told her not to rush and that Jonathon had driven to work that day and was just a phone call away.

Since I had an idea of when my mom was coming, I sprung into action.  Nice time for the nesting instinct to kick in.  I stripped the sheets off my bed and Jamayia’s bed, and remade both of them.  I washed those sheets too.  Then I grabbed and changed all the towels and washed those after the sheets.  I did some other minor cleaning too.  Even though my Mom was coming to help me, I didn’t want to just dump everything on her.  Plus, I realized that moving around seemed to stop the contractions, or at least make them less painful.

At 9 pm, just after tucking the girls into bed, I was standing on the stairs, talking to Mom & Jonathon when I felt a small gush of water.  I looked down and was very, very glad to see that there was no leakage on the carpet.  I went to my bathroom and changed my clothes.  I finished gathering the last minute items in my hospital bag, and also packed some snacks for Jonathon.  Turns out that he hadn’t eaten all day long.  He’d skipped breakfast, grabbed some onion rings quickly in the afternoon and hadn’t really had the chance for anything else all day.  On the way to the hospital, I kept asking if he didn’t want to stop in at a drive thru somewhere, but he kept refusing.  Even when we arrived at the hospital, Tim Horton’s was still open, but he wanted to see me settled in first.

I got to the hospital at 9:45 pm.  Contractions were more regular, about 15 minutes apart.  It was nice to go through the brief registration procedure without constant pain.  It was also great arriving there late at night.  It was nice and quiet and not a lot of people around.  My main goals were to get a private hospital room and also an epidural.

I’d had an epidural for Jamayia’s birth and missed it with Jhyelle.  I figured I had arrived early enough to not miss it again this time…

(Part 2 to come soon)

Something’s Up

It’s appointment day today.  I have 2 appointments, back to back.  First up–OB appointment.  We’ll see what, if anything is going on.  I’ve been quite uncomfy and having sporadic contractions since about 11:30 pm last night, so we’ll soon find out.  The second appointment is to get my WinRho shot.  The Hubby took the morning off to chauffeur me around too.  I guess I’m finally too pregnant to drive??

It Just Slipped Out

Today’s my “official” due date, according to my doctor.  (I’ve always said the 20th, just because I prefer the even number.  No rhyme or reason behind it though.)

So, during my prayer time this morning, I finally had a thought as to this baby’s gender.

Girl.

I was praying for my girls by name; Jamayia, Jhyelle and then “hidden girl’s name” just slipped right on out after I said her sisters’ names. Woah–I didn’t expect that.  Up until this point, I had no feeling either way, gender-wise. Everyone I know is assuming that it’s a boy.  They’re assuming that we want a boy.  (There have been a lot of assumptions from all sorts of people who aren’t involved in this pregnancy, but that’s another post.)  I’ve had people come and rub my tummy, talking to the boy they predict I’m having.  My sister-in-law even bought me a little onesie that says “handsome, just like daddy”.  She’s quite confident it’s a boy.

But suddenly, today, I feel it’s a girl.  The name just flowed out.  I didn’t even think about it.  Up until this point, when praying for my unborn by name, I’ve always called both girl’s & boy’s names.  Not today.  That’s changed.

I have an OB appointment tomorrow.  We’ll soon find out.

No Progress Yet

This baby isn’t yet ready to make his/her appearance.  I saw a Dr today (mine was on vacation, but I saw her colleague) and he checked for dilation.  He did ask if I wanted my membranes swept if I was dilated.  It may bring on labour within the next few days.  No thanks, I told him.  Personally, I’m not too keen on um, aiding labour along.  Things will start when they’re ready, I say.  Yes, I’m uncomfy and all, but not feeling any need to rush things along.

Plus, there’s the biggie–I have my hair appointment tomorrow, which I fully intend to keep.  I don’t know when next I’ll be able to get my hair done and cut, so this appointment is crucial.  I’d last gone in October, so it’s been awhile.  I was not missing this appointment.
Glad I had my heart set on no.  I’m only about 0.5 cm dilated.  Yes, half a centimeter. 
Keep on waiting, folks.

We’ve Picked Names

Hubby & I were chatting two nights ago and realized that we didn’t really have names picked out.  We had some ideas jotted down on a master list, which we’ve keep updating since 2006, but hadn’t really settled on anything for this baby yet.  Last night, we came together and worked on a boy’s name and a girl’s name (since we don’t yet know the gender).

I’m happy to say that we found one of each that both are fans of.  And there’s still no baby to attach the moniker too.  
I’m not trying to rush the child.  I’m not exactly looking forward to the delivery portion with my arms wide open, eager to embrace the childbirth experience.  C’mon now–it hurts!!!  
Within the next couple weeks, I’m sure, you’ll be hearing what our baby’s name is.

Grocery Shopping With Your Little Ones

I feel so honoured when my fellow mommy friends look to me for suggestions. What I do certainly isn’t spectacular or earth-shattering. It’s just a matter of developing something that works for you and your child. With that, here are some ideas of shopping trips with the little one(s).

–Make your shopping list the night before. Walk through the house, fridge, pantry, wherever else and note what you need to purchase. You’ll soon find yourself creating your list based on store layout. Yes, you will become that familiar with your local grocery store—ha ha!

–Pack your diaper back/purse the night before. Make sure you have your wallet, membership cards, change for shopping carts. Include a snack for your child. Also include your favourite baby carrier. This device is a must!!! Depending on your child’s age, also include a fake shopping list for them & pencil. Or a toy that will attach to the cart.

–Layout clothes the night before. Plan what you’re going to wear. Plan what the cutie will wear. Anything that saves you time the next morning is an asset.

–Wake up before your child. Give yourself enough time to get ready at a relaxed pace. Eat breakfast. Pour out the child’s breakfast. Pack your list in the diaper bag.

–Once baby’s up, get them ready in a jiffy, fed and head out the door. I’ve found that the fresher they are when we leave home, the easier the shopping trip goes. Plus, at a young age, you’re racing against the nap clock (IE: you want to be back before the next nap).

–Say a quick prayer before entering the store. It may sound funny, but there is a confidence in knowing that God is with you, even at the store.

–Upon entering the store, get comfy. Strip off hat, mitts, unzip jackets, etc. Plant a smile on your face and have fun.

–If you wanted to do any browsing, start with that. (IE: check out the clothing sections for cute deals, etc).  Be sure to keep your cart closer to the center of the aisle.  Those cute little hands can grab things quickly!

–Shop away. I used race against myself, allowing 1 hour to be in & out of Superstore. Just as long as you keep the cart moving, they’ll be okay. Sing to them, laugh with them. Look for teaching moments. My girls have learned that when there are people/carts in the way, they have to call out “excuse me, please” to get by. (Of course, we’re still working on volume control—ha ha!).  Teach them about price comparison.

–If they start to get really antsy at any point, stick them in the baby carrier. They’ll enjoy being closer to Mommy and getting a new perspective on the world. Plus, it’s just an extra physical workout (yay, exercise!!) for you too 😀

–Go home.

You may want to begin with only one store per trip, until you & Baby have built up a comfy routine. You’ll soon figure out what works best for you, and will be writing your own tips.

Again, these are just my suggestions.  Things that have worked for me.  I wanted to get them written down before Baby 3 enters the picture and just shatters this nice illusion…ha ha!